Mexico’s Abraham Montoya has been named the replacement opponent for Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz on the July 18 DAZN card in Carson, California, Cruz’s advisor told BoxingScene Monday.
Cuba’s Cruz, 6-1 (3 KOs), was due to fight lightweight contender Albert Bell, but Bell was summoned to replace England’s Joe Cordina versus WBO lightweight champion Abdullah Mason in Cleveland on Saturday night.
Mason defeated Bell by 12th-round stoppage in a tightly contested title bout.
That left Cruz with a void for the co-main event under the Diego Pacheco-Immanuwel Aleem super-middleweight main event on July 18 at Dignity Health Sports Park, an outdoor venue coined the “war grounds” for its slew of all-action battles over the years.
Ranked No. 4 by the WBC and IBF, Cruz, coming off an IBF title loss to Raymond Muratalla in January, now faces a come-forward foe from Mexicali who’s compiled a 24-7-1 ledger with 14 KOs.
Montoya, 31, defeated former featherweight champion Joseph Diaz Jnr in 2024.